FILMS

Producers promise a narrative faithful to Scripture with visuals set in contemporary times meaning Christ will ultimately don an an orange jumpsuit while carrying His cross.

A new musical theater depiction of the Easter story will hit the big screen at nearly 300 movie theaters — including four in the Diocese of Phoenix — for a one-night showing during Holy Week.

It's an engaging dramatization that remains faithful to the underlying message of scripture even as it speculates about the childhood of Jesus, a topic on which the Gospels are virtually silent.

It's not very often that two movies come out around the same time about the same person — real, legendary or fictitious, making the release of two movies in two months about Jesus Christ — "Risen" and "The Young Messiah." — all the more notable.

https://youtu.be/bY73vFGhSVk NEW YORK (CNS) — Anthropomorphism runs amok in the 3-D animated comedy-adventure "Zootopia" (Disney). As with Disney's "Cars" franchise, which presented a world of automobiles...

Two soon-to-be-released films seem better positioned to ignite a sustained revival of the marriage of scriptural message with opulent production values: Director Timur Bekmambetov's updating of "Ben-Hur" and "Risen," a Resurrection-focused drama directed and co-written by Kevin Reynolds.

"Firelight," one of Matt Maher's latest songs, was inspired by the experience and legacy of Mother Teresa whose biographical film hits theaters Dec. 4.

There's a delight in watching "The Good Dinosaur" seamlessly transition from family tale to buddy movie to rip-roaring Western, and then back again, all genre variations that share spectacular backgrounds rendered in photo-realistic fashion.

Just as blanket-loving Linus succeeds, each year, in pointing small-screen viewers toward the real meaning of Dec. 25 — by the sound method of quoting the Gospel of Luke — so hapless Charlie Brown (voice of Noah Schnapp) teaches moviegoers a lesson about divine providence and the power of prayer at the climax of this latest "Peanuts" outing.

The widespread esteem in which Francis is held — both within and beyond the confines of the church — has made him something of a sanctified staple on the big screen.